The Garden Party Where It All Changed
by ihearttennant
Summary: "That was the night that Lady Sybil Crawley became a woman". Possibly continuing beyond one-shot. Reviews more than welcome. T for now, may become M later.


**Just discovered this amazing show and these two were my favourite characters. Read and review please - let me know what you think of my first DA fanfic!**

**Obligatory disclaimer: This amazing world belongs to Julian Fellowes, that talented man. I'm merely borrowing it for my own purposes.**

"We are at war with Germany"

Lord Grantham's words caused a stir at the garden party, as wives flocked to their husbands' sides, friends huddled together to fearfully discuss this new global development, and people solemnly contemplated the gravity of their situation. Tom had been on his way back to the house, his mind whirling with other recent events, when Lord Grantham had called for silence. Tom had known immediately what was about to happen – Ferdinand's assassination had left Downton, and the rest of England, living on borrowed time.

Tom searched the crowd for her; she was lost among the flurry of people moving about the party, but he stayed next to a large tree a short distance from the tent. Ah, there she was. Huddled with her mother and Lady Mary, her eyes were searching the crowd for something – some_one_ – and oh, how he hoped that someone was him. However, she didn't find what, or who, she was looking for, and so was pulled back into the conversation with her family. He noticed the scared look on her face; she had taken off her hat and played with the ribbon on it. She chewed on her lip, and all that he wanted to do was to run over and pull her into his arms, and keep her safe from whatever this wretched war would bring. Instead, he let that scenario play out in his head, and turned from the party, walking back to his cabin.

Just as he left, her eyes sought out the back of his head as he retreated from the party – and soon, Sybil feared, he would be retreating from the safety of Downton.

_Tom_

Tom stoked the small fire in his cabin and lay back on his bed. He had not returned to the house after the announcement of war, instead retreating to his cabin and his own thoughts. He knew what would come soon; the men of England, and no doubt his friends at Downton, would enlist to be shipped off to a filthy trench to fight a battle that they couldn't win. They would fight for honour, for their country's well-being, but would come back as shells of the men that they were, ruined by war. He had been thinking about whether he would fight for England at all. Mostly, thoughts of her swam through his brain; how he couldn't bear to leave her, how he would miss their talks of politics, and his fear of if he left, she would find a proper suitor and be married and pregnant by the time of his return. In time, she would forget all about the radical Irish chauffeur and would move on with her life with a more appropriate man, according to society's expectations.

He heard a small knock at his cabin door. He assumed it was Daisy, who sometimes brought him dinner if he had not eaten with the rest of the staff. He didn't bother putting on boots or a jacket, nor taming his hair, not for Daisy. To his surprise, he wrenched the door open, and there she was; in fact, he wondered if he was asleep and had fallen into a dream.

_Sybil_

_Oh_ _Lord, forgive me for the impure thoughts currently running through my brain_, thought Sybil Crawley as she stood in front of a clearly surprised Tom Branson. He was there in nothing but a white shirt and comfortable trousers, and his hair was messed up in the cutest way. Any skills of coherent speech left Sybil in that instant, and instead she stood there, mouth slightly agape at the sight before her. His shirt allowed Sybil to see the muscle definition in his arms and pectorals, and she had never seen anything so…_beautiful_. He was her very own version of a Greek God.

"Milady, what are you doing here at this hour? Is something wrong?" He asked, self-consciously smoothing down his hair.

"Aside from what's to come, you mean?" She gave a small, sad chuckle. "May I come in, that is, if I'm not interrupting anything?"

He nodded, and moved aside to allow her entry into his home. She looked around, having not actually been inside the chauffeur's cottage before, and saw various pamphlets, books and pictures that all made the room Branson's own. She stood in the middle of the room, unsure of where to stand or sit. Tom was hurriedly clearing off space on his bed, and motioned for her to sit on the edge. He continued shoving papers into a small set of drawers and kept cleaning up the place.

"Forgive me, milady, I wasn't expecting anyone-"

"Sybil."

"Pardon, milady?"

"Call me Sybil, Tom. We're equals here", she said pleadingly.

He looked into her eyes, both shocked and pleased by what she had said.

"Well then, Sybil, what can I do for you?"

She looked into his eyes.

"Don't go, Tom."

His eyes snapped to hers, and he sighed.

"I may not have a choice, Sybil".

"Of course you do! You can choose to stay at Downton! You can choose to stay with-"

She stopped in her tracks and looked away, having almost revealed too much. She hadn't intended for it to be like this – she just wanted to talk like they always did, and take her mind off things, and generally be in his presence. All of that, however, had gone out of the window when he opened the door looking amazingly handsome, and everything bubbled to the surface.

He seemed to have the same reaction, and he walked forward to sit beside her on the bed. He timidly placed a hand on her cheek, guiding her eyes towards his.

"Stay with whom, Sybil?" Clearly he needed to hear her say it aloud.

Tears threatened to spill over onto Sybil's cheeks, but she fought them will all of her will.

"Stay with me, Tom", she said in barely a whisper. "Please…I love you"

With her words, he gave a small smile that made her heart jump, and caressed her face with his palm.

"Oh Sybil, you're going to get me in so much trouble…but I can't help it…I love you too".

_He's going to say yes_, she thought happily. _He'll stay with me_.

"But I don't know if staying here will be possible. Who knows where this war will lead. I may need to head back to Ireland...It would kill me to leave you, Sybil, but it's a real possibility".

She couldn't help it; tears began to silently spill onto her cheeks. He wiped them from her cheek lovingly.

"I want to stay, and make you happy; I've loved you from the minute I saw you in that radical frock - but we both know that if I stayed, your family would never accept us. They would never let me love you."

More tears spilled onto her cheeks.

"I know it's impossible, Tom – I'm not as naïve as people think. But I don't care! I don't! I can't live my life in fear, worried about my family's expectations! I want to be with you. You listen to me and don't dismiss my opinions as naïve or uneducated; you treat me as an equal and you are so kind, and-"

Tom broke her off with a soft kiss that stopped Sybil in her tracks. Her brain stopped whirling at a hundred miles an hour, her breathing slowed and she felt at total peace. He broke off the kiss, wanting to see her reaction, but before he could she pulled her face to his, pouring every emotion that she had into the mind-blowing kiss. His hands moved to her waist, and hers became entangled in his hair. Their kisses grew deeper, more urgent, before he pulled away, both of them trying to catch their breath.

"I think it's time to stop, before I can no longer control myself". He said, clearly trying to control himself.

"What if I don't want to stop?"

His eyes snapped to hers.

"We can't…I can't do that to you, if people found out – hell, if your family found out, I'd be out of here so fast and you…"

She smiled – she knew what he was trying to say.

"Oh Tom, don't you remember? Women's Rights start in the home, and with myself. I choose you, I choose now. Who knows what the future will hold? All that I know is that I love you, and I want to be with you - right now…"

He paused, clearly weighing up his options. His answer was sealed with a soft kiss, as he guided her to lie in his bed. He peppered her neck with kisses that made her heart soar. He pulled away suddenly to look at her.

"Are you sure about this?"

"Yes. But…"

"What, love?"

"I've read that it…hurts…I'm just…have you been with a woman before?"

"Yes. But not one like you. You're a goddess compared to them".

She looked into his eyes, and saw a combination of lust, and nerves, and love.

"I trust you."

He stroked her face with his index finger.

"You are so beautiful. I love you"

She smiled, and placed her hands on either side of his face.

"I love you. More than you know".

That was the night that Lady Sybil Crawley became a woman.

A/N: Review please, possibly continuing this for a couple more chapters if I get enough positive feedback!


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